Keylogger is a program that captures and logs keystrokes as they are entered on the computer for the purpose of monitoring the user. The logged data, which may be encrypted, is saved or sent to the person who installed the key logger. That's what happened to the users of Omerta online game.
Players of the online game Omerta have more than the rival gangsters in the computer game to worry about. According to anti-spyware vendor Sunbelt Software, of Clearwater, Fla., hackers have been spreading spyware disguised as software from Omerta Game Ltd.
Sunbelt Software President Alex Eckelberry informed users to be on guard of any software for the game that's not from Omerta. Attackers are trying to trick users into downloading piece of malware called ProAgent that captures and logs keystrokes on a computer, he said.
"ProAgent is a very, very nasty piece of malware," Eckelberry said in an interview with eWEEK. "The problem is that users need to only use software that is from a verified, reputable source, not something they get off some obscure site like we've seen with Omerta."
Surveillance Tools are software applications that monitor and capture data from computers including screenshots, keystrokes, web cam and microphone data, instant messaging chat sessions, email, visited websites, programs run and files accessed and files shared on a P2P (peer to peer) network. Many Surveillance Tools can run in stealth mode, hidden from the user, and have the ability to store captured data for later retrieval by or transmission to another computer. A keylogger is one simple, standard type of Surveillance Tool.
The posting of the threat to users comes on the heels of Microsoft announcing March 21 that it had opened an investigation into reports of hijackers getting user account information. While he was unsure if this was a trend for hackers to use online video games as an attack vector, Eckelberry said cyber-criminals are always looking for ways to get information.
"What you have now is a largely criminal element trying to find ways to trick people through social engineering," Eckelberry said. "Players of games are merely one more avenue of exploitation. |
